Who Doesn't Love Vintage!

Vintage is a word dear to my heart...as I am sure it is for all collage and mixed-media artists. Breathing life into an object once again is thrilling. You never know where it will lead you.

In this case, my tag celebrating the magic of receiving a letter in the mail was one of the featured "Friday Favorites" on Kim's Living Vintage Blog. Kim lives in East Texas and her company deconstructs old houses, then builds new, "old" houses and renovate existing homes using reclaimed materials. Their home is breathtaking, as you can imagine!

Please visit Kim's Blog, Living Vintage. But be prepared to "oooh" and "ahhh" over the lovely photos and interesting restorations. I fell in love with her Dogtrot Breezeway...stained glass and bookshelves! HEAVEN!

What Lurks Between The Covers?

Pulp - Collage

Books. I love them. All of them. From the tiny mini books sold at the registers in stores to the lavish coffee table publications, each have a place in my heart and my life.  The printed word. I can't live without it.

I can chart the years by my books, and I can usually remember where I purchased them and why. I note cities I've visited not only by name but by the bookstores they possess. And Heaven on earth to me is a Public Library.

While trying to reorganise my bookshelves, I came across my small collection of pulp or pocket-book fiction. Although normally associated with the mid twentieth century, Argosy Magazine started the genre in 1896. Portable, accessible, and cheap to produce and purchase, the books were available at bus and train stations, drugstores, and newsstands. Westerns, War, Detective, Science Fiction, Horror, Romance...no topic was taboo. Who could resist titles like I Am A Woman, Murder In Paradise, Nude In Mink, or Halfway To Hell with suggestively illustrated covers guaranteed to bring in sales?

Tereska Torres' Women's Barracks, "the frank autobiography of a French girl soldier", was just what I had in mind for my collage.  The substrate for the collage is illustration board.  I cut the cover into strips and wove it together with art paper, handmade paper, and text from within the book.

Pulp is now part of the National Collage Society's 17th annual Postcard Exhibit, and is one of the award-winning collages. I am delighted...and honoured...to be in such fine company.

For me, pulp fiction will forever conjure romantic images of steamy train stations and glimpses of forbidden lives with each turn of the page.  So, what does lurk between the covers?

Are You Resigned To A Life Of Quiet Desperation?

The Journey Within & Forever - Collage

I noticed for the first time today how much longer the days are becoming. The icy grip of Winter is moving behind us. Spring is teasing us...a little sunshine here, a little hint of a warm breeze there.  And I am grabbing all of it with both hands delighted with the change.

And change and the Seasons shape who we are and the life we live. A quote I often reflect upon is from Henry David Thoreau's Walden. It reads in part: "The mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation." I firmly believe it is true. Being a "grown-up", accepting responsibilities and the life it brings has a seductive way of siphoning any spontaneity and creativity we may have dragged kicking and screaming into our present. 

But there is an escape. Every time we remind ourselves to constantly look at things differently we rekindle the flame of creativity that dwells within us all. As Artists, it is our stock in trade. 

Travel is the genesis of my creativity. It allows me to break free and fulfill the dreams I dream. It is physical travel, or seeing another point of view through a film, or reading about an adventure. Travel opens the door to my bliss. It has, and will continue, to make me who I am. It is the nourishment my Art craves.

The substrate for the collage is a canvas panel. Art paper, magazine paper, handmade paper are woven together and finished with a French stamp.

Are you resigned to a life of quiet desperation? Are you willing to challenge your conventional way of thinking to live a life of great success and great failure? Are you willing to follow your soul, your Muse, to the place that reaffirms your unique and flawless self? I wish you a life fully lived.

Women Are Inspiring...Who Inspired You?

Life Is A Song - ATC

Today is International Women's Day. The theme for the 2014 celebration is: “Equality for women is progress for all”. The day is a clear reminder of how far we have come...but yet we still have a long way to go. When I look back on the opportunities and resources available to my great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother I can appreciate there has been progress. But just not enough, not fast enough, and not globally enough.

"Life is a Song...Sing It", is a passage attributed to Mother Teresa I read in the Grand Circle Corporation book of quotes. It inspired this Artist Trading Card and I feel it is echos the spirit of today's celebration. We all have a unique voice and together we open doors for each other, not only on one day of the year, but every day, every year.

My life is shaped by so many women. I imagine my Muse to be a woman as well. She isn't a singular being, but rather bits and pieces of the women who have influenced my life. She has the business savvy of my maternal great-grandmother; the intelligence and forward thinking of my maternal grandmother; the fortitude of my paternal grandmother; the work ethic of my paternal aunt; the nurturing compassion and sound judgement of my mother, and finally the constant support of my partner.

My Artist Trading Card is a mixture of a vintage photo, Distress Inks, and acrylic paint stencilled and rubber stamped on to the illustration board substrate.

As International Women's Day draws to a close, show your appreciation to all of the powerful, influential women who make a difference in your life. Women are inspiring. Who inspired you?

What Is Life Without Mystery?

Life Is A Mystery - ATC

Mystery. I  love the word. For me, it conjures up images of smoke and mirrors, the positive and negative aspects of religious fervour, the secret of the inexplicable. Was the reason for the birth of the word in the 14th century much different from our use of it today?

Mystery spurs us on, a kind of Muse who quietly nudges us to explore, discover, and find our ultimate truth...in essence, to "know".

I chose to illustrate this line, attributed to Mother Teresa, from the Grand Circle Corporation book of quotes . The substrate for the card is illustration board. Dreamy shades of Distress Inks and acrylic paint set the background. In addition to the art paper and a wrapper from a Hershey's Kiss, I rubber stamped images using metallic acrylic paint. The thoughtful woman pondering her fate was over stamped with a Fleur-de-lis, a symbol representing wisdom, faith, and chivalry.

Our paths are many, but mystery and the search for answers and meaning in our Art and in our life, inspires us all.

Where would you be today without mystery in your life?

Another Real Life Adventure!

Jodie & Millie's Real Life Adventure. Collage.

Life can take us places we never dreamed of…or only visited in our dreams.

Jodie and Millie’s adventure has taken them to the National Collage Society’s Twenty-Ninth Annual Juried Exhibit. Over five hundred works were submitted. In addition to the United States, Croatia, Italy, Hungary, Canada and France were represented. The jury selected ninety-six pieces for the exhibition.

I am honoured and delighted to say Jodie and Millie are in fine company.

To view the exhibit, please visit the National Collage Society 29th Annual Exhibit website.

When we follow our Muse, anything is possible!